attire
Americanverb (used with object)
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attires,
present (3rd person singular)
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attired,
past participle, past
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attiring
present participle
noun
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clothes or apparel, especially rich or splendid garments.
-
the horns of a deer.
verb
noun
-
clothes or garments, esp if fine or decorative
-
the antlers of a mature male deer
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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attiresimple
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attiressimple
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have attiredperfect
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has attiredperfect
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am attiringprogressive
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are attiringprogressive
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is attiringprogressive
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have been attiringperfect progressive
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has been attiringperfect progressive
Past
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attiredsimple
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had attiredperfect
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was attiringprogressive
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were attiringprogressive
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had been attiringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of attire
1250–1300; (v.) Middle English atiren < Anglo-French atirer, Old French atirier, verbal derivative of a tire into a row or rank ( see a- 3, tier 1); (noun) Middle English atir < Anglo-French, noun derivative of the v.
Explanation
The noun attire is just a formal way to say "outfit." And if you’re going outside in the middle of a blizzard, your attire should include more than a bathing suit and flip-flops. Attire can also refer to the antlers of a deer, but that’s a pretty obscure definition. So let's stick to the more common uses: put it into verb form and it means "to dress or clothe." Which makes sense, since it comes to us from the Old French atirier, meaning “to equip, ready or prepare.” Charles Dickens wrote that “Great men are seldom over-scrupulous in the arrangement of their attire" — meaning the clothes do not make the man.
Vocabulary lists containing attire
100 SAT Words Beginning with "A"
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"Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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Beowulf vocabulary
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The shoes have endured because they’re comfortable and go well with formal and casual attire.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
As workplaces become more casual, opinions on what’s appropriate work attire seem to be only getting stronger.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
The Envelope spoke to the costuming teams behind these Emmy-nominated series about toast-worthy guest attire.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
The government has issued heat warnings and urged residents to take measures to stay cool, including encouraging office workers to ditch formal attire for breezier outfits.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
Despite the casual attire, he projects an air of au-thority.
From "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer
The people who showed up at the Harris rally came in clusters, some families and some groups of friends, all of different ages, races and attires.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2024
When the cruise company told some of them that at least 250 Newfoundlander couples were already booked, many brought their flags and traditional attires to celebrate the island's heritage on board.
From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2024
"This would be a colorful Rajasthan wedding, and both Brand and Perry would be attired in Indian wedding attires," Singh said.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 21, 2010
Toni-Leslie James’s carnivalesque costumes provide the only touches of color, and they are limited to the attires of Mr. Bones and Mr. Tambo.
From New York Times ● Mar. 11, 2010
The four went off soon after breakfast, having spent much time and effort on their various attires, and weren't seen again until late afternoon.
From The Adventure Club Afloat by Ralph Henry Barbour
Ehis now has a master's degree in international business and says it was important to mark the occasion properly attired, even if it can be financially difficult.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
In one of the more arguably iconic sequences, David Byrne and his band — all attired in bright blue uniforms — appeared Tuesday to perform the Talking Heads anthem “Burning Down the House.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2026
It doesn’t hurt that she’s attired in a series of extremely flattering outfits by the venerated costume designer Travis Banton.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
“We believe Cook is a hall-of-fame CEO, and he will be CEO for at least the next two years,” says the ever-colorfully attired Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities.
From Barron's ● Dec. 18, 2025
And myself and Louise, tastefully attired and holding small nosegays of seasonal flowers.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
"They were seeing themselves as individuals and set themselves apart," said Wendi Ferreira of the styling duo Wendi and Nicole, who are attiring Oyelowo, Channing Tatum and Chris Pine for the Oscars.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2015
Pledging eternal faithfulness, Frankie proceeds to support Johnnie, attiring him in "hundred-dollar" suits.
From Time Magazine Archive
It seemed rather hard that Graham and Jack, attiring themselves in garments so old as barely to be presentable should yet be designated by a term of such unbounded contempt.
From Peggy Raymond's Vacation or Friendly Terrace Transplanted by Harriet L.
See, too, on women, “under pretence of religion, attiring themselves as men,” Sozomen, iii.
From History of European Morals From Augustus to Charlemagne (Vol. 2 of 2) by William Edward Hartpole Lecky
He himself picked out the sumptuous long-skirted garments she was to wear and watched with the deepest interest the rather slow process of her attiring.
From In Connection with the De Willoughby Claim by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
